Method and system for making and playing soundtracks

ABSTRACT

A composite variable duration soundtrack for a user to play while reading a text source, the soundtrack duration being defined by a soundtrack timeline. The soundtrack comprises multiple sound layers configured to play concurrently through the soundtrack timeline, each sound layer having an arrangement of one or more audio features that are configured to play at preset start times in the soundtrack timeline. At least one sound layer is adapted for modifying the preset start and stop times of its audio features to match the reading speed of a user based on a reading speed input.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No.13/002,634 filed Feb. 28, 2011 which is the National Stage entry under35 U.S.C. §371 of International Application PCT/NZ2009/000106 filed Jun.16, 2009 and which claims the benefit of priority under 35 U.S.C. §119of New Zealand application number 569618 filed Jul. 4, 2008, thedisclosures of which are all incorporated herein by reference in theirentirety.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The invention relates to a method and system for making and playingsoundtracks. In particular, but not exclusively, the soundtracks are fortext sources, such as books, e-books, magazines, mobile phone text,reports, comic books, film scripts and the like.

BACKGROUND TO THE INVENTION

Books and other blocks of text are read usually silently but atdifferent reading speeds depending upon the difficulty of the text andthe reader's normal reading speed.

Some publishers provided audio books in the form of pre-recorded audiocassettes, compact discs, or internet downloads which provide a completeor an abridged narration of the book. They are an alternative to readingand are used by the blind to listen to books, or by those who prefer tolisten rather than to read.

Soundtracks for books or other source text have not been successful asthey may provide suggested background music but are not synchronised tothe text on the page so add little to the reading experience.

In this specification where reference has been made to patentspecifications, other external documents, or other sources ofinformation, this is generally for the purpose of providing a contextfor discussing the features of the invention. Unless specifically statedotherwise, reference to such external documents is not to be construedas an admission that such documents, or such sources of information, inany jurisdiction, are prior art, or form part of the common generalknowledge in the art.

It is an object of the invention to provide a method for making and/orplaying soundtracks for text sources, and/or an improved soundtrack fortext sources, or to at least provide the public with a useful choice.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In a first aspect, the present invention broadly consists in a compositevariable duration soundtrack for a user to play while reading a textsource, the soundtrack duration being defined by a soundtrack timelineand comprising: multiple sound layers configured to play concurrentlythrough the soundtrack timeline, each sound layer having a arrangementof one or more audio features that are configured to play at presetstart times in the soundtrack timeline, and wherein at least one soundlayer is adapted for modifying the preset start times of its audiofeatures to match the reading speed of user based on a reading speedinput.

Preferably, each audio feature further comprises a preset stop time thatdetermines when it stops playing in the soundtrack timeline, and whereinat least one sound layer is adapted for modifying the preset start andstop times of its audio features to match the reading speed of a userbased on a reading speed input.

Preferably, at least one sound layer is adapted for modifying the presetstart and stop times of its audio features to match the reading speed ofthe user based on the reading speed input such that the sound quality,pitch or tempo of the original audio feature is not altered.

Preferably, the soundtrack timeline is divided into a series of timeslotsegments that correspond to a series of text chunks of the text source,each timeslot segment having a timeslot segment period, and whereinaudio features of the sound layers are configured to start in apredetermined timeslot segment.

Preferably, the sound layers comprise a mixture of fixed reading speedsound layers in which the preset start times of the audio features ofsuch layers are independent of the reading speed input, and variablereading speed sound layers in which the preset start and stop times ofthe audio features of such layers are dependent on the reading speedinput such that the preset start and stop times of the audio featurescan be matched to the reading speed of the user.

Preferably, the variable reading speed sound layers comprise audiofeatures having preset start and stop times that are defined as apercentage of the timeslot segment period, and wherein the timeslotsegment period is based on the reading speed input such that the startand stop times of the audio features can be altered to match to thereading speed of the user.

Preferably, each audio feature has associated audio properties thatdictate one or more playback effects associated with the playback of theaudio feature. More preferably, the playback effects comprise any one ormore of the following: fade in and out effects, looping effects, end oftext segment rules, and transition effects.

Preferably, the audio properties of each audio feature comprise settingsdictating transition effects associated with the audio feature if it isplaying when the user initiates a transition from one timeslot segmentin the soundtrack timeline to another timeslot segment, the transitioneffects determining the playback of the remaining portion of the audiofeature.

Preferably, the audio properties of each audio feature comprise settingsdictating transition effects associated with the audio feature if it isplaying during at the end of a timeslot segment in the soundtracktimeline, the transition effects determining the playback of theremaining portion of the audio feature.

Preferably, the transition effects comprise any one of the following:continue playing, stop playing, fade-out, or loop. More preferably, thetransition effects are configured to cause a gapless soundtrack playbackbetween timeslot segment transitions so that the reading process is notdisturbed.

Preferably, each text chunk corresponds to a page of text in the textsource such that each timeslot segment in the soundtrack timelinecorresponds to a page of the text in the text source.

Preferably, the soundtrack playback is configured to transition from thestart of one timeslot segment to the start of the next timeslot segmentin the series in response to a transition input. In one form, thetransition input is generated by a remote device operable by the user.In another form, the transition input is generated by user operation ofan audio player upon which the soundtrack is played.

In a second aspect, the present invention broadly consists in a methodof producing a composite soundtrack for a user to play while reading atext source, the length of the soundtrack being defined by a soundtracktimeline, the method comprising the steps of: (a) creating multiplesound layers arranged to play concurrently during the soundtracktimeline; (b) inserting an arrangement of one or more audio featuresinto each sound layer to play at preset start times in the soundtracktimeline, the preset start times of audio features of at least one soundlayer being variable such that they are configured to depend on thereading speed of the user based on a reading speed input; and (c)compiling the sound layers and audio features into a soundtrack that isadaptable to match the reading speed of the user based on a readingspeed input.

Preferably, the method further comprises the step of dividing thesoundtrack timeline into a series of timeslot segments that correspondto a series of text chunks of the text source, each timeslot segmenthaving a timeslot segment period, and wherein step (b) comprisesconfiguring each audio feature to start in a predetermined timeslotsegment.

Preferably, step (a) comprises creating a mixture of fixed speed soundlayers in which the preset start times of the audio features of suchlayers are independent of the reading speed input, and variable readingspeed sound layers in which the preset start and stop times of the audiofeatures of such layers are dependent on the reading speed input suchthat the timing of audio features can be matched to the user's readingspeed.

Preferably, step (b) comprises defining the preset start times of audiofeatures of variable reading speed layers as a percentage of thetimeslot segment period, and wherein the timeslot segment period isbased on the reading speed input such that the start and stop times ofthe audio features can be matched to the reading speed of the user.

Preferably, the method further comprises the step of modifying the audiofeature(s) of one or more of the sound layers after the soundtrack hasbeen compiled. Preferably, the step of modifying the audio feature(s) ofone or more of the sound layers comprises allowing the user to insertnew audio features and/or replace audio features in the soundtracktimeline. More preferably, the new audio feature(s) comprise songs ormusic from the user's own music library.

In a third aspect, the present invention broadly consists in a method ofmaking a soundtrack for a text source, the soundtrack comprisingmultiple layers of sound, each layer having one or more audio features,the method comprising the steps of: recording the required layers ofsound of the soundtrack for the text source; producing the soundtrack inselected audio formats; producing software files to control soundtrackand audio feature transitions, and making the soundtrack and thesoftware files available to a reader of the text source, wherein thestart and stop time positions of audio feature(s) in at least one of thelayers of sound are capable of being changed to match the customer'sreading speed.

In a fourth aspect, the present invention broadly consists in a methodof making a variable duration composite soundtrack particularly for abook, e-book, or other text source, the soundtrack comprising multipleaudio features compiled into layers of sound and the method comprisingthe steps of: recording the required layers of the soundtrack for thetext source; producing the soundtrack in selected audio formats;producing software files to control soundtrack and sound filetransitions; and making the soundtrack and the software files availableto a reader of the text source, wherein the playback of at least one ofthe layers of sound is capable of being matched to the reader's readingspeed by altering the start and stop times of each audio feature in thesoundtrack.

In a fifth aspect, the present invention broadly consists in a method ofproviding a variable duration composite soundtrack particularly for abook, e-book, or other text source, the soundtrack comprising multiplelayers of sound divided into chunks, each chunk comprising one or moreindividual audio features and corresponding to a length of text in thetext source, comprising the steps of recording the required layers ofthe soundtrack for the text source such that at least one layercomprises audio features the position of which in the soundtrack ischangeable to match a typical reader's reading speed; producing thesoundtrack in selected audio formats; producing software files tocontrol soundtrack transitions between the chunks of audio features; andmaking the soundtrack and the software files available to the reader.

In a sixth aspect, the present invention broadly consists in a method ofselling a soundtrack for a book or other text source, the soundtrackcomprising multiple layers of sound, each layer comprising one or moreaudio features, and wherein the playback of at least one of the layersof sound is variable such that it is capable of being matched to thecustomer's reading speed by changing the start and stop times of eachaudio feature in the sound layer, measuring the customer's reading speedand delivering a version of the sound track which substantially matchesthe customer's reading speed.

Preferably, the variable sound layer(s) comprise audio features that aretimed to coincide with events described in the text source as they areread, the timing of the audio features corresponding to the customer'smeasured reading speed.

In a seventh aspect, the present invention broadly consists in asoundtrack for a book or other text source, the soundtrack comprisingmultiple layers of sound with at least one layer which includes soundeffects timed to coincide with events described in the text source, thetiming being related to the expected reading speed of a reader, and atleast one other layer of sound which includes background or scene music.

In an eighth aspect, the present invention broadly consists in a methodof making a variable duration soundtrack for a text source, thesoundtrack comprising multiple layers of sound where the playback of atleast one of the layers of sound is adjustable to a reader's readingspeed by adjusting the start and stop times of the audio files and audiofeatures that comprise the soundtrack, the method comprising the stepsof recording the required layers of the soundtrack for the text sourceallowing for the playback of at least one of the layers of sound to beadjustable; producing the soundtrack in selected audio formats;producing software files to control soundtrack transitions; and makingthe soundtrack and the software files available to the reader.

In another aspect, the present invention broadly consists in a method ofmaking a soundtrack particularly for a book, e-book, mobile phone textmessage or other text source, the soundtrack comprising multiple layersof sound, each layer having one or more audio features, the methodcomprising the steps of recording and mixing the required layers of thesoundtrack for the text source, producing the soundtrack in selectedaudio formats; producing software files to control the audio featuretransitions, and making the soundtrack and the software files availableto the reader, wherein the start time positions of audio feature(s) inat least one of the layers of sound is capable of being changed to matchthe reader's reading speed.

In another aspect, the present invention broadly consists in a method ofproviding a soundtrack particularly for a book or e-book, the soundtrackcomprising multiple layers of sound divided into chunks, each chunkcomprising multiple individual audio features and each chunkcorresponding to a length of text (typically a page in length),comprising the steps of: recording and mixing the required layers of thesoundtrack for the book wherein the length of each chunk is changeableto match a typical reader's reading speed by varying the start times ofthe audio features in each chunk; producing the soundtrack in selectedaudio formats; producing software files to control soundtrack chunktransitions; and making the soundtrack and the software files availableto the reader.

Preferably, the multiple individual audio features can run concurrentlywith each other but retain individual variable speed, duration andtransition properties.

Preferably, one or more of the layers of sound comprise audio featuresrepresenting sound effects, music and scene related sound, and each suchaudio feature has a start position that is based on a measured ratiobetween each significant sound effect or scene change in a chunk so thatthe sound effects and scene changes can be started and stopped to matcha typical reader's reading speed.

Preferably, the reader can select their reading speed on an audio playeror e-book and the start positions of the sound effect and scene relatedaudio features in each chunk can be adjusted by a set ratio to match thevariation in reading speeds.

Preferably, the sound layers comprise at least one variable durationsound layer in which the preset start and stop times of the audiofeatures of such layers are dependent on a reading speed inputrepresenting the reader's reading speed such that the playback timing ofthe audio features in the layer can be matched to the reading speed ofthe user. More preferably, each audio feature has associated propertiesthat control the transitions between the audio features to cause gaplesstransitions between chunks of the soundtrack. For example, theproperties may comprise fade in/out or abrupt stop/start transitionsbetween audio features playing at the time of a transition from onechunk of the soundtrack to the next. The transition properties of eachaudio feature may comprise rules for what the audio file being playeddoes if the end of the page or text chunk is reached or selected, forexample fade out or continue.

Preferably, the soundtrack may be configured to allow the reader toreplace some audio features of some layers with audio featurescomprising songs from an existing music library of the reader by eitherchoosing which songs to replace or the soundtrack software automaticallyreplacing the songs based on selection criteria such as the popularityor genre of the songs or the musical characteristics such as beat, tempoor pitch. Preferably, if the reader decides to reconfigure thesoundtrack with their own music from their music library, this willcreate a new soundtrack that the user will have the option to upload andresale as an alternative soundtrack to cater for different music tasteor languages.

Preferably, at the time of purchase the average reading speed of thereader is determined, and the reader is provided with a version of thesoundtrack for his chosen book which most closely matches his averagereading speed.

Preferably, an external remote, audio player or e-book may be used tocontrol the transition of the soundtrack from page to page of the textsource.

Preferably the audio player, remote or e-book can be triggered as thepage is turned which cues the various audio features that pertain tothat page at a rate and timing that is predetermined by the readingspeed previously set to commence.

In another aspect, the present invention broadly consists in a method ofselling a soundtrack for a book, e-book or other text source, thesoundtrack comprising multiple layers of sound where the soundtrackaudio file's start and stop times of at least one of the layers of soundis capable of being matched to the customer's reading speed, measuringthe customer's reading speed and delivering a version of the sound trackwhich most closely matches the customer's reading speed.

Preferably, “the at least one layer of sound” includes sound effects oratmospheric sound timed to coincide with events described in the book orother text source, the timing related to the customer's measured readingspeed.

Preferably, the soundtrack or at least the “at least one layer of sound”is produced in two or more variants to match different expected readingspeeds, and the version chosen for sale is matched as closely aspossible with the measured reading speed of the customer.

In another aspect, the present invention broadly consists in asoundtrack for a book or other text source, the soundtrack comprisingmultiple layers of sound with at least one layer which includes soundeffects timed to coincide with events described in the book or othertext source the timing being related to the expected reading speed of acustomer, and at least one other layer of sound which includesbackground music.

In another aspect, the present invention broadly consists in a book orother text source and a matching soundtrack for that book or other textsource, the soundtrack comprising multiple layers of sound with at leastone layer which includes sound effects timed to coincide with eventsdescribed in the book or other text source, the timing being related tothe expected reading speed of a customer, and/or at least one otherlayer of sound which includes background music.

In another aspect, the present invention broadly consists in a method ofmaking a soundtrack particularly for a book, the soundtrack comprisingmultiple layers of sound where the playback start and stop times ofsoundtrack audio files of at least one of the layers of sound isadjustable to a reader's reading speed comprising the steps of recordingthe required layers of the soundtrack for the book allowing for theplayback start and stop times of the each individual audio file thatmake up the soundtrack of at least one of the layers of sound to beadjustable, producing the soundtrack in selected audio formats,producing software files to control soundtrack transitions and makingthe soundtrack and the software files available to the reader.

Preferably the soundtrack is playable through an audio player or e-bookand controllable by a remote device, e-book or the audio player.

Preferably, the audio player or e-book is capable of interfacing withthe remote device and/or a computer connected directly or wirelessly.

Preferably, the remote device is capable of synchronizing the soundtrackwith pages of the book.

Preferably, the selected audio formats are digital audio formats such asmp3, wma, aac and other known digital audio formats.

Preferably, the soundtrack contains multiple soundtrack files.

Preferably, the soundtrack contains a single soundtrack file and anassociated data file.

Preferably, the soundtrack may include songs from a music librarylocated on the audio player or on a computer.

Preferably, the songs may be matched to the chapters or pages of a bookby beat, tempo or pitch.

The phrase “text source” as used in this specification and claims,unless the context suggests otherwise, means any form of readingmaterial whether it is in a hardcopy printed form or electronic copy,including, but not exclusively, a book, e-book, mobile phone textmessage, magazine, report, comic book, film script or the like.

The phrase “text chunk” as used in this specification and claims means apredefined length of text in the text source, the text source beingdivided or segmented into a series of text chunks of a length that maybe defined in various ways depending on the embodiment, including, byway of example only, a page of text, a group of pages, a chapter, a pageof mobile phone text, a predefined number of words or any other measureof text length appropriate to the particular text source.

The phrase “audio player” as used in this specification and claims meansall devices and systems, portable or otherwise, that are capable ofplaying a digital audio file or soundtrack for producing sound,including devices such as Personal Computers, PDAs, MP3 players, mobilephones, i-pods and e-book systems, or any other audio system.

The phrase “audio feature” as used in this specification and claimsincludes audio sounds consisting in a digital audio file or recordingthat make up the sound for the soundtrack.

The term “comprising” as used in this specification and claims means“consisting at least in part of”. When interpreting each statement inthis specification and claims that includes the term “comprising”,features other than that or those prefaced by the term may also bepresent. Related terms such as “comprise” and “comprises” are to beinterpreted in the same manner.

As used herein the term “and/or” means “and” or “or”, or both.

As used herein “(s)” following a noun means the plural and/or singularforms of the noun.

The invention consists in the foregoing and also envisages constructionsof which the following gives examples only.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

Preferred embodiments of the invention will now be described by way ofexample only and with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a flow chart showing the steps of making a soundtrack inaccordance with a first preferred embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 2 is a flow chart showing how the soundtrack would be delivered tothe customer in accordance with a first preferred embodiment of theinvention;

FIG. 3 is a diagram of an indicative hardware setup for loading thesoundtrack from a computer to an audio player in accordance with a firstpreferred embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 4 is a diagram of an indicative hardware setup for playing asoundtrack made in accordance with the first preferred embodiment of theinvention;

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing the sound layers of a composite soundtrackof a second preferred embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 6 is a table showing the soundtrack timeline of the compositesoundtrack and corresponding reading timeline of the associated textsource;

FIG. 7 is a diagram showing the modification of the soundtrack timelinebetween slow and fast reading speeds;

FIG. 8 is a block diagram showing the composite soundtrack file packageformat;

FIG. 9 is a block diagram showing a hardware system and software modulesof the soundtrack production system in accordance with a secondpreferred embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 10 is a screenshot showing a graphical user interface of thesoundtrack production system software;

FIG. 11 is a screenshot showing the file menu of the soundtrackproduction system software;

FIG. 12 is a screenshot showing the soundtrack properties informationbox of the soundtrack production system software;

FIG. 13 is a screenshot showing the soundtrack chapter menu of thesoundtrack production system software;

FIG. 14 is a screenshot showing the page menu of the soundtrackproduction system software;

FIG. 15 is a screenshot showing the audio properties menu of thesoundtrack production system software;

FIG. 16 is a screenshot showing the start effect options in the audioproperties menu of FIG. 15;

FIG. 17 is a screenshot showing the stop effect options in the audioproperties menu of FIG. 15;

FIG. 18 is a screenshot showing the page skip effect options in theaudio properties menu of FIG. 15;

FIG. 19 is a block diagram showing a hardware system and softwaremodules of the soundtrack playback system in accordance with a secondpreferred embodiment of the invention; and

FIG. 20 is a flow diagram for the reading speed matching function of thesoundtrack system in accordance with the second preferred embodiment.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

The invention relates to a composite soundtrack for a text source, suchas a book, e-book, mobile phone text book or any other form of readingmaterial, and an associated method and system for making and playing thecomposite soundtrack. In particular, the soundtrack may be played by auser as they read the text source to enhance their enjoyment of readingexperience. The soundtrack is customised to the particular text sourceand can be customised to match a user's reading speed and music taste.

With reference to FIGS. 1-4, a first preferred embodiment and variantsof the composite soundtrack, method and system will be described.Following this, a second preferred embodiment of the compositesoundtrack, method and system will be described with reference to FIGS.5-20. It will be appreciated that aspects and features of the firstpreferred form composite soundtrack, system and method may be adoptedand applied to the second preferred form, and vice versa.

First Preferred Embodiment

FIG. 1 shows a method for making a soundtrack in the context of a textsource in the form of a book and starting from the point of obtaining abook publisher agreement to produce the soundtrack to the point ofmaking the soundtrack available to the reader. The described order ofsteps is only a non-limiting example, and the steps may be performed inany order. Also it should be noted that some steps can be omitteddepending on the use and implementation of the produced soundtrack. Thefollowing paragraphs describe each step and the different optionsavailable for each step.

As shown in step 1 of FIG. 1, prior to producing a soundtrack for a bookthe publisher of the book may be approached so that an agreement couldbe reached to promote the soundtrack along with book. It is advantageousif the publisher of the book agrees to publish all versions of the bookwith the same text content and page numbering to allow for a singlesoundtrack to be valid for all book versions published.

In the first preferred embodiment, the soundtrack is preferably producedcomprising separate soundtrack files for each page of the book, althoughoptionally the separate soundtrack files could match each chapter or agroup of pages of the book (step 2). The soundtrack is a compositesoundtrack preferably consisting of many sound layers, each layer havingone or more audio features such as sound effects (e.g.: gun shots, doorsslamming, phone ringing), background music (e.g.: orchestral music, bandsongs), and atmospheric noise (e.g.: weather sounds). The sound layersplay concurrently together such that multiple audio features fromdifferent layers can concurrently play together. The audio features arestrategically placed within their respective layers to match eventshappening in the book as the reader reads the text. All the layers arethen combined together to form a single soundtrack. The exactpositioning and timing of the audio features is important for propermatching of the soundtrack to the text of the book. Professional audioequipment such as mixing and dubbing equipment can preferably be usedfor this step.

Once the soundtrack is prepared, it is encoded in one or more preferredaudio formats, such as, by way of example only, mp3, wma, aac, and otherknown digital audio formats, as required by a variety of readers (step3). In the first preferred embodiment, variations of the soundtrack areproduced to run at many different reading speeds. For simplicity, 3speeds are described in this specification, namely for low, medium andfast readers by way of example only. However, in practice it will beappreciated that an unlimited number of variants of each soundtrackbased on the expected reading speeds of customers can be produced.

To achieve this, the placement of audio features in one or more of thelayers of sound in the soundtrack can be varied within a page asrequired for the different reading speeds. In the first preferredembodiment, one of these ‘variable reading speed layers’ would be thesound effects layer of the soundtrack or other layers when a change ofscene took place. Therefore, the audio features in the sound effectslayer of the slow reading speed soundtrack are much more spread out thanthe audio features of the fast reading speed soundtrack. However, theratios of time between the audio features of the different reading speedsoundtracks would be equal to each other. This method ensures that thesound effects will be correctly timed to play when the reader is readingthe appropriate text on the page of the book. The position of the audiofeatures in other layers of the soundtrack, such as layers comprisingcertain background music and scene noise that run from the beginning ofa page, would be the same in the soundtracks produced for the differentreading speeds, and are referred to as ‘fixed reading speed layers’. Inthe first preferred embodiment, the background music and the scene noiselayers are configured to play for a longer time in the low reading speedsoundtrack than the fast reading speed soundtrack to account for thelonger time taken to read a page.

The next step is to produce software files to control the transitions ofthe soundtrack between pages, chapters, sections, and the audio featuresof the sound layers (step 4). The software is able to control thetransitions between the audio features of the sound layers of thecomposite soundtrack so that there are gapless transitions betweenpages, fade in/out or abrupt stop/start transitions between audiofeatures. The software files are arranged to preferably provide acontinuous sound output throughout the duration of the book or relevanttext chunk of the book, such as a chapter. Furthermore, the softwarefiles may be configured to allow the reader to replace some layers ofthe soundtrack or specific audio features of a layer with sound layersor audio features from their own music library. For example, thesoftware files may be configured to allow a reader to replace the entirebackground music layer of the soundtrack or specific audio featureswithin that layer with songs from the reader's existing music library.The reader may either choose which songs to replace or the softwarefiles can automatically replace the songs based on selection criteriasuch as the popularity or genre of the songs or the musicalcharacteristics such as beat, tempo or pitch. This capability enablesthe reader to create their very own individual or customised song layerwithin the soundtrack which could subsequently be uploaded to a websiteand resold as explained later.

In the next step the soundtrack and software files are delivered to thecustomer (step 5). The soundtrack is sold either via the internetdirectly or wirelessly or from a store. If the soundtrack is sold viathe internet the soundtrack and software files could be downloaded overthe internet directly or wirelessly, and if sold from a store allsoundtrack files will be contained on storage media or downloaded at thestore.

Once the soundtrack and software files are produced and sold to areader, (step 6) the soundtrack and software files may be loaded from acomputer 10 directly or wirelessly to an audio player 11 as shown inFIG. 3 or listened to directly from the computer while reading a book ore-book. The audio player 11 may be any commercially available audioplayer 11 which could provide the reader with the audible sound from thesoundtrack. Preferably, the audio player 11 may be capable of playingany available digital audio formats such as mp3, wma or aac and alsocapable of executing software files produced for the soundtrack thatcontrol the playback of the soundtrack, including sound and pagetransition effects for example. The software files loaded on to theaudio player preferably provide the reader the option of using thedefault songs of the soundtrack for the background music layer or useexisting songs in the audio player's music library as explained laterunder example 5 of the variations section (step 7).

FIG. 4 shows a remote device 13 that may optionally be used to controlthe soundtrack files played from the audio player (step 8). The remotedevice 13 is preferably a handheld device or alternatively it may beattachable, for example by a clip or hook, to a book 12. In the firstpreferred embodiment, the remote device 13 includes a button that can bepressed when the reader decides to read the next page of a book 12 andthe button triggers the software files to select and play the soundtrackfile corresponding to that page or skip to the corresponding portion ofthe soundtrack relating to that page. Alternatively, the remote device13 may have the capability to automatically detect when a page is turnedby a page turn sensor. It may further include play, pause, next page,previous page buttons and an LCD display to display the page numberbeing read. Some software data files may also be loaded onto the remotedevice 13 to control the transitions of soundtrack files or fortransitioning through the soundtrack. The remote device 13 may also havea built in audio buffer memory which could buffer a short length ofsound from the audio player 11 so that when the next soundtrack file ischosen to be played it can perform cross fading between soundtrackfiles. It could mix, fade, or merge the previous soundtrack fileseamlessly with the next soundtrack file. The audio player 11 is notrequired to perform the cross fading of soundtrack files if this optionis enabled.

In step 9, the software files loaded on to the audio player 11 preparetransitions between audio features of the sound layers of thesoundtrack, including transitioning of the soundtrack through pages,chapters and/or sections of the book 12 so that the transitions areseamlessly executed when the soundtrack is played while reading the book12. It will be appreciated that the sound could be carried to the readerfrom the remote device 13 through a pair of headphones 14 or a separateset of speakers.

FIG. 2 shows an example of the process involved in delivering thesoundtrack to the reader. It is not necessary for the reader to completeall these steps depending on the individual method of sale being used.

In step 1 of FIG. 2, the reader buys a text source, such as a book,e-book, an online text, audible book or any other publication with text.The reader is able to check if a soundtrack for the selected book isavailable by looking for advertisements contained in the book, on theinternet or other advertising mediums (step 2). Next the reader is urgedto assess his or her reading speed by following written or audibleinstructions on a website or elsewhere (step 3). This may be done byreading a paragraph that is timed on a website. The reader may downloadthe soundtrack and any associated software data files corresponding tohis or her reading speed from an internet online store, or from a shop(step 4). The reader is able to load all the required soundtrack filesand any associated software files on to their audio player (step 5).Next the software associated with the soundtrack allows the reader theoption of modifying the soundtrack so that songs contained in a musiclibrary of the audio player may be used as a replacement to the songs ofthe soundtrack (step 6). If the reader prefers to use songs contained ina music library, they can select which songs in their music library touse in the soundtrack or have the software files automatically choose aselection of songs based on recent playlists, the most popular songslistened to, the song genre, the beat of the songs or a combination ofthese factors. In step 7, the reader may connect the audio player 11 tothe remote device 13 which in turn is attached to a book 12 as shown inFIG. 3. Once the soundtrack and software files are loaded on to theaudio player from a computer 10 the reader selects their reading speedand plays the soundtrack on the audio player and starts reading thebook. Once the reader has read a page, the reader may select the nextsoundtrack file by pressing a button on the audio player 11 or remotedevice 13 as they turn over to the next page (step 8). In step 9, thesoftware files control the transition between the soundtrack files aseach soundtrack file is played according to the text being read on thebook. The transitions provide a seamless soundtrack to the reader untilhe finishes reading the last page of the book. If the reader chooses touse their own songs for the songs of the soundtrack in step 6, they havethe option of uploading the soundtrack with their own songs to a websiteas explained in step 10. Once uploaded, the soundtrack could be resoldas an alternative to the original soundtrack of the book to cater forvarying music taste or languages.

Variations of the First Preferred Embodiment

The following examples describe possible variations of the firstpreferred embodiment of the soundtrack, method and system describedabove.

Example 1

In this example, a soundtrack file is created for each page of a booksuch as a novel as described above. Each page soundtrack file is acombination of layers of music and background sounds matching the moodand environment of the page and the sound effects matching the events inthe book as they happen on that page. There are multiple versionsgenerated to match varying readers speed so that the sound effects andscene sounds will match events happening in the book as the reader readsthe page.

The reader assesses their reading speed on a website by reading aparagraph that is timed. The complete soundtrack containing the softwarefiles and the soundtrack files for the required reading speed can thenbe purchased and downloaded from an online music retailer website.

All the downloaded soundtrack files for the book are loaded onto anaudio player. The reader selects each page soundtrack file to be playedwhen the reader commences reading each page by selecting a track thatmatches the page number on an audio player or a remote device that maybe attached to the book.

Software files associated with the soundtrack may automaticallycross-fade page soundtrack files when they are selected. This fades outthe volume of the previous track as the volume of the next track isslowly increased so that there is no audio gap between page soundtrackfiles as this may ruin the mood of a scene in the book.

Example 2

In this example, a single soundtrack file is created for an entire bookthat also has an associated data file. The data file contains detailsthat would allow the audio player to determine how the soundtrack fileis divided up for each page of the book. This file is loaded on to theaudio player and it indexes the soundtrack file so that a segment of itcan be played for each page of the book when selected by the user. Thereader would select the audio segment of the soundtrack corresponding toeach page of the book using a remote device or directly on the audioplayer in the same way described in example 1. All other aspects of thisexample would be the same as described previously.

Example 3

The soundtrack produced for this example includes a base track on whichsound effects and background music would be layered over, where the basetrack changes at the appropriate point while reading a book, e.g. end ofchapter or start of a new scene. The base track may be played overmultiple groups of text or pages. The audio player and the remote devicesynchronises the sound effects for each page of the book as the readerclicks a next page button on the remote device or a button provided onthe audio player. Software files are produced that accommodate thisfeature by loading a data file associated with the soundtrack thatcommands the audio player to play the appropriate base track for therequired groups of text or pages, and synchronise the sound effects ofeach page and music over the top of the base track. All other aspects ofthis example would be the same as described previously.

Example 4

In this example, the software files produced for the soundtrack have theability to automatically calculate the reader's reading speed based onthe time taken for the reader to turn to the next page of a book. Thetime would be measured from the audio player or remote device by timingfrom the point of time where the reader selected to play a soundtrackfile to the point where they selected the next soundtrack file. It wouldthen automatically adjust the timing of at least one layer of sound ofthe next soundtrack file, preferably the sound effects layer, so that itwould match the time taken to read the previous page. The timing of thesound effects of the next page is automatically adjusted by the softwareaccording to the time taken to read the previous page, so that the soundeffects closely matches the events happening in the next page. The starttime of other layers such as background music and scene noise would alsobe extended or shortened to match the length of time taken to read theprevious page. This example allows for the variations of the reader'sreading speed while reading a book and matches the reader's readingspeed on a continuous basis until the last page is read. All otheraspects of this example would be the same as described previously.

Example 5

This example may be used in conjunction with any of the above exampleswhere the software files allow the reader to replace some layers of thesoundtrack such as the background music layer with songs from anexisting personal music library in the audio player or a computer. Thereader is provided with the option of selecting the specific locationsof the soundtrack where they wish the preferred songs to be playedthrough the use of software files. Alternatively, songs may beautomatically chosen by software files based on song categories such aspopularity, genre, beat, or other measures. The software files may alsosuggest the mood or type of activity occurring in a scene correspondingto a particular soundtrack file and enable the reader to more accuratelypick appropriate music to add to the background music layer of thesoundtrack file.

Furthermore the soundtrack files may be produced with intentional gapsin the background music layer or song layer so that they could beautomatically filled with songs the reader has loaded on their audioplayer. The software files loaded on to the audio player will determinea selection of songs which could be placed in the gaps of the soundtrackbased on selection criteria such as the popularity or genre of the song.It may also be possible for the software files to automatically choosesongs from the audio player based on beat, tempo or pitch of the songs.All other aspects of this example would be the same as describedpreviously.

Furthermore the reader has the option to deselect from playing all othersound layers in the soundtrack except for the personalised music theyhave incorporated into a user generated music sound layer of thesoundtrack from their own music selection and which will play at themoment in the book that has been designated for a user generated“soundtrack song”. This may be a part of the book with a heightenedimportance or emotive piece of text that will benefit from a “soundtracksong” of the user's choice. This enables a reader to listen to theiraudio player as described previously but also have their chosen orfavorite song(s) played as they are reading the most important oremotive part of the book or text without any background or scene audiosound layers being played.

If the user decides to change the music they would have created theirown soundtrack and would be given the option of uploading it back to awebsite for resale.

Example 6

This example may be used in conjunction with any of the above examplesexcept the reader utilises a website to make their personalisedsoundtrack selections including reading speed and replacing some layersof the soundtrack, such as the background music layer, with songs fromeither their own existing music library via upload to the website, orfrom a selection of options on the website, e.g. author's choice, mostpopular, country music theme, etc. A list of type of song required maybe provided, e.g. sad, action, scary, etc., from which the reader candetermine which song they wish to fill each spot in the soundtrack. Oncethe reader has made all selections, the soundtrack will be produced bythe website and made available to the reader to download. Thissoundtrack can be a single soundtrack or have multiple layers asdescribed in the above examples. The reader has the option of makingthis soundtrack available for others to upload for which a fee may becharged.

Example 7

This example may be used in conjunction with any of the above exampleswhere the soundtrack is specifically produced for the text of an e-bookor electronic print media. Preferably the option to download thesoundtrack would be available at time of purchase of the e-book orelectronic print media. The playback of the soundtrack files could becalibrated to the text of the e-book displayed on a computer displaythrough the use of software files. The software files could match theplayback of each soundtrack file to the rate at which the pages of ane-book are selected by the reader. The soundtrack files could be playedfrom the computer used for reading the e-book or through a separateremote device controlling an audio player. The remote device would becapable of receiving a cue signal via a connected cable, or wirelessly,from the computer used for reading the e-book when a page of the e-bookis turned by the reader. This would be similar to the reader clickingthe next page button of the remote device in example 1 so that the nextsoundtrack file is played. All other aspects of this example may be thesame as described previously.

Example 8

This example may also be used in conjunction with any of the aboveexamples where the soundtrack includes an additional voice layercontaining an oral reading of the book as in an audio book. The softwarefiles would provide an option to the reader of turning the voice layerof the soundtrack on or off through the use of the audio player. Thisgives the reader the option to read the text while listening to thesoundtrack or have the book read to him or her while also listening tothe soundtrack. All other aspects of this example would be the same asdescribed previously. Preferably each version of the soundtrack(calibrated to the customer's expected reading speed) would have theoral reading layer set at the same speed or be able to adjust to theoral reading speed.

Example 9

This example has an additional feature that can be incorporated into anyof the above listed examples, where the soundtrack includes anadditional layer of sound containing a commentary or explanatory notesfrom the author or someone else that can be selected to play or mute.This is useful for educational purposes or for giving the reader insightin to the characters or the story plot of the book. All other aspects ofthis example may be the same as described previously.

Example 10

In this example, the soundtrack produced could be used to help teachreading to children or second language skills. A soundtrack with a voicelayer containing an oral reading of the book is produced which helps thereader while reading a book such that the audio voice starts loud andthen decreases in volume over time as the reader progresses through thepages of the book. By utilising the automatic variable reading speedcomponent the soundtrack layers described in example 4, the soundtrackcould function as a virtual aid predicting where difficulties may occurjudging by the time taken to read a page of a book and thus assistingthe reader when the time taken to read a page is longer than apredetermined value. The assistance given to the reader may includemaking appropriate real noises associated with difficult words e.g.: moofor cow, voice over audio helping breakdown word sounds e.g.: because,be-cause, voice over audio that reads along that slowly diminishes andthen only helps out on tricky words, a reading score can be input by thereader through the remote device and the soundtrack would automaticallyadjust how much help the reader receives. All other aspects of thisexample may be the same as described previously.

Second Preferred Embodiment

With reference to FIGS. 5-20, the second preferred embodiment of apreferred form composite soundtrack, and the method and system forproducing and playing the soundtrack will be explained. The secondpreferred embodiment relates to an example of a composite digitalsoundtrack file format and the associated methods and systems forproducing and playing the soundtrack.

Composite Soundtrack Overview

With reference to FIG. 5, a schematic representation of a preferred formsoundtrack 20 is shown. The composite soundtrack 20 is multi-layered,and comprises two or more sound layers that run concurrently duringplaying of the soundtrack. By way of example, three sound layers 22, 24,26 are shown, although it will be appreciated that any number of layerscould be provided in other forms of the composite soundtrack. In thepreferred form soundtrack 20, a music layer 22 is provided forbackground songs, a background layer 24 is provided for atmosphericnoise, and an effects layer 26 is provided for sound effects that aretimed with events happening in the text source. For example, the musiclayer 22 may comprise desired background music such as orchestral musicor band songs, the background layer 24 may comprise weather sounds,scene noise or the like, and the effects layer 26 may include soundeffects such as gunshots, door-slamming, lightning etc, that are timedto synchronise with events occurring in the text source.

In the preferred form, the sound layers 22, 24, 26 in the soundtracktimeline are segmented into a series of timeslot segments 30 a, 30 b, 30c. Likewise, the associated text source is divided or segmented into aseries of text chunks. Each timeslot segment 30 a, 30 b, 30 c in thesoundtrack corresponds to a text chunk in the text source. Threetimeslot segments 30 a, 30 b, 30 c are shown in FIG. 5 by way ofexample, although it will be appreciated that the number of timeslotsegments in the series will depend on the length of the soundtrack andits associated text source, and the soundtrack timeline may be anydesired length. For the purpose of explanation, the text source will bea book and each text chunks corresponds to a page of that book. However,it will be appreciated that the text chunk segmentation may be varied tosuit different types of text sources and requirements. For example, thetext source could be segmented into text chunks that consist of groupsof consecutive pages, chapters, length of text based on the number ofwords, or any other suitable segmenting regime. In the preferred form,the length of each text chunk is substantially equal, although thesegmenting of the text source need not necessarily be equal in otherforms.

In the preferred form, the duration or length of each timeslot segment30 a, 30 b, 30 c is arranged to correspond to the user's reading speedfor the text source. For example, if the timeslot segments correspond totext chunks in the text source having a length of one page, and thereader takes 30 seconds to read one page, then the length of eachtimeslot segment is set to 30 seconds. In effect, the soundtracktimeline, consisting of a series of timeslot segments, is substantiallyequal to the user's reading timeline for the text source, consisting ofa series of text chunks.

The timeslot segments are delineated from each other by time-markers T1,T2, T3, T4 that are located at spaced-apart intervals along the lengthof the soundtrack timeline. Each pair of adjacent time-markers defines acorresponding timeslot segment that extends across the sound layers 22,24, 26. This relationship between the series of timeslot segments,time-markers and corresponding text chunks is shown in the table of FIG.6. As shown, each timeslot segment 30 a, 30 b, 30 c corresponds to anassociated text chunk of the text source, which in this example is onepage. The duration of the timeslot segments, referred to as the timeslotsegment period, is set by the position of the time-markers correspondingto each timeslot segment. For example, timeslot segment 30 a isdelineated by start time-marker T1 and stop time-marker T2. Likewise,timeslot segment 30 b is delineated by start time-marker T2 and stoptime-marker T3 and so on for the remaining timeslot segments in theseries.

Reverting to FIG. 5, each sound layer 22, 24, 26 comprises one or moreaudio features. The audio features are audio files that are arranged toplay at a particular selected point during the timeline of thesoundtrack. There may be multiple audio features within a singletimeslot segment of a sound layer, or an audio feature may extend overmultiple timeslot segments.

By way of example, music layer 22 is shown with a single audio feature32, such as a song, that starts in timeslot segment 30 a and ends intimeslot segment 30 b. The background layer 24 comprises an audiofeature 34, such as atmospheric or scene noise, that starts playing intimeslot segment 30 a and continues playing through timeslot segments 30b and 30 c. The nature of the music and background sound layers 22, 24is such that their audio features are likely to play continuously overmultiple consecutive pages of the book and therefore over multipleconsecutive timeslot segments. In contrast, the effects layer 26 tendsto comprise multiple audio features within each timeslot segment, asmultiple events tend to occur within one page.

In the preferred form, each of the audio features in the various layersof the soundtrack has a predetermined or specified start position in thesoundtrack timeline. The start position of the audio features in thesoundtrack 20 of FIG. 5 are shown in the soundtrack timeline as S32,S34, S36, S38, S40, S42, S44, and S46. The end position of the audiofeatures depends on the length of the audio file associated with theaudio feature, or the audio feature may optionally be provided with apreset stop position that may vary with reading speed.

The soundtrack 20 is configured such that one or more of the soundlayers may be matched to the user's reading speed. More particularly,the layers of the soundtrack may be defined as either ‘fixed readingspeed sound layers’ or ‘variable reading speed sound layers’, and insome forms the soundtrack may have a mixture of fixed and variablereading speed sound layers. In other forms, the soundtrack will comprisesound layers that are all of the ‘variable reading speed sound layer’type. The type of sound layer determines the nature of the start/stoppositions of the audio features of that layer. By way of example, fixedreading speed sound layers play their audio features at preset positionsin the soundtrack that are independent of the user's reading speed,whereas variable reading speed sound layers are employed for audioeffects that are timed with events occurring in the text source andtherefore the timing or position of the audio features in such layers ismatched with and dependent on the user's reading speed.

For fixed reading speed sound layers, each audio feature has an absolutestart position such that the audio feature starts at a predeterminedtime within the soundtrack timeline or within a particular timeslotsegment, regardless of the user's reading speed or the timeslot segmentperiod. For example, the music 22 and background 24 sound layers may befixed reading speed sound layers such that their respective audiofeatures 32 and 34 of have absolute start positions so that the audiofeature starts at a predetermined time in the soundtrack timeline orwithin a particular timeslot segment independent from the user's readingspeed. The same applies to the optional stop positions, if these are setfor the audio features.

For variable reading speed sound layers, each audio feature has avariable start position that is based on the timeslot period of thetimeslot segment within which the audio feature begins playing. In thisrespect, the timeslot segments of the soundtrack timeline haveadjustable or variable timeslot segment periods that are set based onthe user's reading speed. In this respect, the composite soundtrack canbe considered as having an variable overall duration that is dependenton the user's reading speed In the preferred form, the variable startposition may be a percentage or ratio start position that is determinedbased on the timeslot segment period of the timeslot within which theaudio features starts. For example, if an audio feature, such as a soundeffect, is to be played according to an event happening halfway into thepage, then a variable start position of 50% of the timeslot segmentperiod would be set. Referring to FIG. 5, the effects layer 26 may be avariable reading speed layer that is matched to the user's readingspeed. Each of the audio features 36, 38, 40, 42, 44, and 46 of theeffects layer 26 may have variable start positions such that theirtiming may be altered according to the user's reading speed according toa reading speed matching function to be explained. Likewise, each audiofeature of variable reading speed sound layers may have a variable stopposition that is dependent on the user's reading speed, if such optionalstop positions are set for the audio features.

Referring to FIG. 7, the reading speed matching function associated withthe soundtrack will be explained. In operation, the reading speedmatching function is arranged to calculate the absolute start positionof audio features in variable reading speed sound layers based on theirpercentage or ratio start positions and the timeslot segment period,which may be varied to match the user's reading speed. By way ofexample, FIG. 7 shows the effects layer 26 generally as 50 a for auser's reading speed of 30 seconds per page, which translates to atimeslot segment period of 30 seconds. Timeslot segment 30 a is shownhaving three audio features 36, 38, and 40, each having respectivepercentage start positions at 15%, 50%, and 75% of the timeslot segmentperiod. Therefore, the reading speed matching function calculates thestart positions of audio features in each timeslot segment using thefollowing formula (1): Absolute start position=start time-marker oftimeslot segment+(percentage start position×timeslot segment period).

By way of example, audio feature 36 begins at time T1+0.15×(T2−T1),audio feature 38 begins at time T1+0.5×(T2−T2), and audio feature 40begins at time T1+0.75×(T2−T1), which translates to respective starttimes of 4.5 seconds, 15 seconds and 22.5 seconds after the starttime-marker T1 of timeslot segment 30 a. If a slower reader employs thesoundtrack and their reading speed is 60 seconds for a page, thetimeslot segment period may be altered to 60 seconds, and the aboveformula (1) employed by the reading speed matching function tore-calculate the absolute start positions of the audio features 36, 38,40 as 9 seconds, 30 seconds, 45 seconds as shown in the modified effectslayer shown as 50 b.

As will be explained further below in regard to the soundtrack fileformat, each audio feature has associated audio properties. Theproperties at least include the start position, whether variable orfixed, within the soundtrack timeline and a link or file path to theassociated audio file to be played. Additionally, the audio propertiesmay comprise variable or fixed stop positions, start and stop effectssuch as fade-in, fade-out, fade-out timed, volume, looping, and playstatus in response to user interaction such as next page input, pageskipping by the user, or what action to take when reaching the end ofthe page if the next page has not been selected by the user. In summary,these audio properties are assigned to each individual audio feature tocontrols how its respective audio file starts, stops and transitionsduring the soundtrack timeline, such as fade in, loop, continue onthrough a transition, stop and other properties that may be required toachieve a continuous and gapless soundtrack between text chunks of thetext source.

Soundtrack File Format

It will be appreciated that the composite soundtrack may be packagedinto various file formats and arrangements for interpretation andplaying by corresponding audio software running on an audio player. Byway of example only, a preferred form soundtrack file format will bedescribed, along with corresponding preferred form soundtrack productionand playing systems, although these file formats and arrangements may bealtered to suit different format and audio software requirements.

Referring to FIG. 8, the preferred form soundtrack comprises a packageof files. The package of files preferably comprises a main data file 52,one or more layer data files 54 corresponding to each of the soundlayers of the soundtrack, and optionally a set of audio files 56 thatcorrespond to the various audio features of the soundtrack. It will beappreciated that the soundtrack may alternatively comprise only the datafiles 52, 54 and that the audio files 56 may be retrieved from adatabase or memory during playing of the soundtrack and in such formsthe data filed may contain linking or file path information forretrieving the audio files from memory, a database or over a network.

In the preferred form, the main data file 52 preferably comprisesgeneral soundtrack data such as, but not limited to, the name of thesoundtrack, length or duration of the soundtrack, associated text sourcename, and any other identification or necessary audio information orsoundtrack information. In addition, the main data file comprises layerdata comprising information about the number of sound layers in thesoundtrack and the names of the sound layers. The layer data may alsocomprise filenames, file paths, or links to the corresponding layer datafile 54 of each of the sound layers, which will be explained next. Themain data file also preferably comprises reading speed data, which inthe preferred form, comprises timeslot segment information relating tothe soundtrack timeline, and for example includes the number of timeslotsegments, timeslot segment period, and time-marker location in thesoundtrack timeline. In operation, the main data file containsinformation that sets the frame-work of the soundtrack including thevarious sound layers and the soundtrack timeline segments. Theparticular audio features and positions of those audio features in eachsound layer are then arranged on the soundtrack according to thecorresponding information in the layer data files(s) 54.

In the preferred form, the soundtrack package contains a layer data file54 for each of the respective sound layers in the soundtrack. Each layerdata file 54 comprises layer type data, which designates whether thesound layer is a fixed reading speed sound layer or variable readingspeed sound layer. As previously described, the variable reading speedsound layers contain audio features having an associated variable startposition that is based on a percentage or ratio of the timeslot segmentperiod calculated by the reading speed matching function. For the fixedreading speed sound layers, the associated audio features are providedwith absolute or fixed start positions along the soundtrack timeline.

Each layer data file 54 also comprises audio feature data. This audiofeature data provides information on the particular audio featuresassociated with the sound layer. Each audio feature of the sound layerhas an associated audio feature data set that contained the audioproperties for that audio feature. By way of example, audio feature datasets for audio features 36, 38, 40 of the effects layer 26 are shown. Inthe preferred form, each audio feature data set comprises the fixed orvariable start position of the audio feature, the associated timeslotsegment in the soundtrack timeline within which the audio featurebegins, a link or file path to the associated audio file, and optionallyother audio feature properties including, for example, start and stopeffects such as fade-in, fade-out, fade-out timed, volume, looping, andplay status in response to user interaction such as next page input orpage skipping by the user, as will be explained in more detail later.

It will be appreciated that the data and information relating to thesoundtrack and its sound layers and audio features of each sound layercan be arranged in different file formats and data file configurations,and that the above is provided by way of example only.

Soundtrack System

In the preferred form, the soundtrack is produced and played by acorresponding soundtrack system. In general, the soundtrack systemcomprises software running on a hardware system. By way of example, thesoundtrack system provides a soundtrack production system for compilinga soundtrack and a soundtrack playback system for playing thesoundtrack. For clarity, both of the production and playback systemswill be described separately, although it will be appreciated that bothsystems may be integrated in an overall soundtrack system if desired.

The soundtrack system software can be configured to run on any suitablehardware system or platform. By way of example only, the hardware systemmay be a general purpose computer, whether desktop, laptop or PDA, amobile phone, e-book, portable audio player, such as an iPod or mp3player, or a standalone hardware system. In brief, the hardware systemrequires a processor on which the software runs, memory, and preferablyan output display, output listening device or audio output such asspeakers or headphones, user interface and an input/output interface forconnecting with other external devices. The hardware system mayoptionally have access to a database or other network in which audiofiles may be downloaded or accessed. It will also be appreciated thatthe soundtrack system may be provided in software applications runningon a website. Additionally, the overall hardware system may bedistributed across one or more devices on a network that communicatetogether.

Soundtrack Production System

Referring to FIG. 9, a preferred form soundtrack production system 60 isshown. As mentioned, the soundtrack system 60 is in the form of softwarerunning on a hardware system 62. As mentioned, the hardware system maybe provided in various forms including general purpose computers, mobilephones, e-books, portable audio players, portable handheld computingdevices or the like. In brief, the hardware system comprises a processor64 on which the software runs, memory 66, a user interface 68 so that auser can interact with the software, an output display 70, which mayform part of the user interface, and an input/output interface 72 forconnecting to external device for downloading and uploading soundtrackfiles. The hardware system may comprise or have an associated database74 that may be connected to a network 76, such as the internet. An audiooutput 65 in the form of speakers or headphones is also provided forconverting the soundtrack audio output signal into audible sound.

By way of example, the main modules and functionality of the soundtrackproduction system 60 will now be described. The soundtrack productionsystem includes a Graphical User Interface (GUI) 80 that is arranged tooperate as the user interface on the output display. A soundtrackgeneral settings module 82 is provided to enable a user to set thesoundtrack data, such as title, associated text source, duration and thelike. In the preferred form, the settings also include the user'sreading speed setting, which may comprise a reading speed selection froman index scale from high to low reading speeds or any other form ofreading speed indication, such as a time period required to read a page.Directly or indirectly, the reading speed setting may determine thetimeslot segment period. As mentioned, each timeslot segment correspondsto a user defined text chunk of the associated text source. In thepreferred form, the text chunk may be a page of the text source andtherefore the timeslot segment period corresponds to the length of timetaken for a user to read one page of the text. The general settings mayalso enable a user to configure the general soundtrack timeline,including the number and period of the timeslot segments and the type oftext chunk each corresponds to, for example one page. This informationcan be configured to partition or segment the soundtrack timeline intopages, and groups of pages that form chapters for example.

A sound layer configuration module 84 is provided to enable a user toconfigure the number of sound layers in the soundtrack, including addingand deleting sound layers, and setting sound layer settings such aswhether the sound layer is a fixed or variable reading speed soundlayer.

An audio features configuration module 86 is arranged to enable a userto place audio effects at desired start positions in each timeslotsegment of each of the sound layers over the soundtrack timeline. As auser inserts a new audio feature into a sound layer, the user may selectthe associated audio file that is played with the audio feature, set thefixed or variable start position of the audio feature in the desiredtimeslot segment of the sound layer, and other audio feature properties,such as start and stop effects that will be explained in more detaillater.

Finally, the soundtrack production system comprises a soundtrackcompiler 88 that is arranged to compile the data and informationrelating to the soundtrack timeline configuration, sound layerconfiguration and audio features set by the user into the requiredsoundtrack data files previously described and outputting those files ina soundtrack package 50.

By way of example, a preferred form GUI 100 for the soundtrackproduction system is shown in FIG. 10. The GUI 100 shows a compositesoundtrack being created with three sound layers 102. Each sound layer102 is provided with a series of equally spaced time-markers 104 thatdelineate the timeslot segments 106. The various shaded blocks 108represent the audio features set to play in each of the sound layers. Aspreviously described, the user can configure the number of layers andlayer names using the sound layer configuration module 84. In thepreferred form GUI 100, each timeslot segment 106 is set to represent atext chunk of one page of the associated text source. Therefore, eachtime-marker 104 represents the start of a new page. For convenience, aseries of consecutive timeslot segments can be grouped into a chapter ofpages so that the audio features in a specific chapter of the soundtracktimeline can be navigated easily. By way of example, the chapterselection ability is shown in panel 110. A soundtrack progress bar 112representing the progress of the soundtrack when it is played is alsoprovided. In particular, progress bar 112 moves across the soundtracktimeline from left to right to show where the soundtrack is playing inthe soundtrack timeline. Playback controls 114 are provided to enable auser to play, fast forward, rewind, slow rewind, stop and pause theplayback of the soundtrack as needed when testing the soundtrack beingcreated. A “next page” button 116 is also provided that enables the userto jump the playback to the start of the next timeslot segment whichmimics the user selecting next page.

FIG. 11 is the file property menu of the GUI 100 that enables the userto create new soundtracks, open existing soundtracks and savesoundtracks to memory, such as a hard drive.

FIG. 12 shows the information box for the soundtrack properties, andwhich enables a user to enter a soundtrack title, author, category and adescription, which may include the title of the associated text sourcethat the soundtrack was created for. A reading speed scale input 118 isalso provided and this is used by the soundtrack general settings module82 to set the timeslot segment period to correspond to the reading speedof the user. It will be appreciated that the reading speed input neednot necessarily be provided in the form of an index scale, but could beentered as a time period if desired. By way of example, the preferredform reading speed scale input ranges from the fastest reading speed 5,representing 30 seconds to read a page, and increasing in 30 secondsincrements per integer, to the slowest reading speed 1, representing 150seconds to read a page. It will be appreciated that the scale may becontinuous and need not necessarily be provided in an integer scale. Inoperation, the reading speed scale input 118 may be altered to match theuser's reading speed and this causes the reading speed matching functionto modify the soundtrack timeline and audio feature start positions ofthe variable reading speed sound layers, such as the effects layer. Inparticular, the time-markers 104 and the period of the timeslot segments106 in the soundtrack timeline are altered to reflect the new readingspeed and the absolute position of the audio features in the variablereading speed sound layers are re-calculated and repositioned accordingto their percentage start positions. FIG. 13 and FIG. 14 show thechapter and page menus for adding, editing and deleting page and chaptersegments to the soundtrack timeline in accordance with the sound layerconfiguration module 84.

Referring to FIG. 15, an audio properties menu is accessible for eachaudio feature in the sound layers. In the preferred form, the audioproperties menu 100 appears when the user clicks into the sound layer atthe position they want their new audio feature to start. Once the startposition in the sound layer is selected, the audio properties menu 120appears, and the start position of the audio feature is recordedautomatically. The type of start position, for example whether it isabsolute or variable, depends on whether the sound layer is of the fixedreading speed type or variable reading speed type. For example, if theuser selects a start position halfway through a timeslot segment in avariable reading speed sound layer, a variable start position of 50%would be recorded against the audio feature.

Using the audio properties menu, the user can then select the audio fileto be played at that position by accessing the file explorer button 122to navigate their database of audio files. The user can then set variousproperties relating to that audio feature 124 as will now be explainedfurther. With reference to FIG. 16, the start effect selection 126determines if there is any effect applied to the audio file when itstarts. The ‘default’ selection will start the audio file as per anormal start. The ‘fade-in’ selection will gradually fade the audio fileinto the soundtrack over a pre-determined fade period, such as 5 secondsfor example, although this will be adjustable.

Referring to FIG. 17, the stop effect selection 128 determines if thereis any effect applied to the audio file when it stops. An audio featurecan stop if it reaches the end of the audio file, or if the next page isselected and the reader is in the middle of listening to an audio file.The ‘default’ selection abruptly ends the audio file. The ‘fade-out’selection fades the audio file out over a pre-determined fade period,such as 5 seconds, although this is adjustable. The lade-out timed′selection fades the audio file out over a pre-determined adjustable fadeperiod once an adjustable ‘stop time’ has elapsed determined from whenthe file commenced playing. Other audio property features, such aslooping the audio file until the end of page, chapter or set time canalso be provided in alternative forms of the system.

Referring to FIG. 18, the page skip effect selection 130 determines whathappens to the audio file if it is playing when the user clicks the‘next page’ button. The ‘default’ selection abruptly stops the audiofile playing. The ‘continue’ selection sets the audio file to continueto play until it finishes (or the end of the page is reached). The‘fade-out’ selection sets the audio file to fade out over apredetermined fade period, such as 5 seconds, when the user selects the‘next page’. Reverting to FIG. 16, the ‘stop time’ selection 132 can beset to determine the duration the audio file will play for. A volumesetting 134 for the audio file is also provided.

Soundtrack Playback System

Referring to FIG. 19, the soundtrack 50 may be played on any form ofhardware system or platform that can operate as an audio player, withaudio output 145 in the form of speakers or headphones for convertingthe soundtrack audio output signal into audible sound. The hardwaresystem 140 preferably comprises a processor 142 upon which thesoundtrack playback system software runs, associated memory 144 for thesoundtrack and software files, output display 146, a user interface 148to enable the user to control the audio player and navigate and modifythe soundtrack, and an input/output interface 150 that enables the audioplayer to be connected to external device, such as remote controldevices 152, networks, such as the internet 154, or storage databases156. By way of example, a hardware system may be a general purposecomputer, portable digital audio player, such as an mp3 player or iPod,mobile phone, e-book or any other portable device capable of runningsoftware applications.

The soundtrack playback system software 160 main modules will now beexplained. The software preferably includes a user interface in the formof a GUI 162 that runs on the output display, and which may be providedin a variety of forms to suit the particular audio player. For example,the GUI may be a simple display of the soundtrack progress, includingtrack or page numbers, or a more complex graphical display like thatshown in FIG. 10. It will be appreciated that the soundtrack playbacksystem need not necessarily have GUI, and the user interface may be inthe form of a control panel or operable buttons.

A soundtrack setup module 164 is provided to enable the user to load asoundtrack 50 which is stored in onboard memory, a connected database,or downloaded from a network connected either wirelessly or which ishardwired. The soundtrack setup module 164 is configured to retrieve thesoundtrack files and interpret the data files for playback of thesoundtrack. In particular, the data files of the soundtrack are used tocall and play the various audio features in the sound layers of thesoundtrack at the desired start positions in the soundtrack timeline.Effectively, the data files contain the information for coordinating theconcurrent playback of the audio features in the multiple sound layers.The audio files may be stored in memory with the soundtrack data filesor may be buffered from a network database or other storage medium. Inthe preferred form, at least some of the audio files associated witheach audio feature of the soundtrack are provided with the package ofsoundtrack files.

A navigation module 166 is provided to enable the user to play, pause,fast forward, fast rewind, page skip, page backward function or otherbuttons to navigate the soundtrack timeline to the appropriate positionwithin corresponding text source, such as a book. For example, if theuser is reading page 4, they may skip to the corresponding 4th timeslotsegment relating to that page in the soundtrack.

As mentioned, the navigation module 166 is arranged to control thetransition of the soundtrack playback between two timeslot segments tocorrespond to the next page the user is reading. In the default mode,the soundtrack layers will pause at the beginning of the next page(timeslot segment), subject to the audio properties of the audiofeatures in that timeslot segment and await the ‘next page’ input tocontinue. If the page transition is initiated by the user by the ‘nextpage’ input prior to the end of the timeslot segment for that page, thesoundtrack will jump to the start of the next timeslot segment. In thissituation, some of the audio features may continue playing subject tothe audio properties previously discussed. The ‘next page’ buttonenables a user to synchronise the playback of the soundtrack with theirreading of the book.

As mentioned, the page transition signal may be generated by operationof a ‘next page’ button on the software GUI 162 or alternatively usingan allocated button on the control panel, such as the ‘next track’button provided on most portable audio players. It will be appreciatedthat the page transition signal can be generated in various waysdepending on the user interface provided by the hardware system orplatform. In some forms, a remote device connected to the hardwaresystem 140, either wirelessly or via a cable, may be arranged to providea page transition signal in response to operation of a ‘next page’button on the remote device by the user. Additionally, or alternatively,the remote device may be attachable to the book and provided with a pageturn sensor that automatically generates a page transition signal inresponse to a page turn. In an e-book context, it will be appreciatedthat e-book reading software may be arranged to automatically generatepage transition signals when the user scrolls to the next page or asoftware application may be provided to sense page navigation for textsources in the form of electronic works. In the preferred form, theremote device may comprise an output display, such as an LCD screen,which displays the current page number corresponding to timeslot segmentbeing played in the soundtrack timeline.

The soundtrack playback system also preferably comprises a reading speedmatching module 168. The reading speed matching module is arranged toreceive a reading speed input from the user and modifies the position ofthe audio features in the variable reading speed sound layers of thesoundtrack to match the reading speed set by the user. As previouslydescribed, the reading speed input may be set on a index scale, or anyother system for indicating reading speed for a text chunk, such as thetime required to read one page of text. This may be adjusted by the userusing the user interface for example.

Referring to FIG. 20, the reading speed matching module will bedescribed in more detail. The reading speed matching function receivesthe reading speed input 170, and directly or indirectly derives the newtimeslot segment period for the soundtrack timeline. The reading speedmatching function 168, on initiation of a new reading speed input,retrieves the audio feature data sets relating to the variable soundlayers 172. As previously described, the audio feature data sets of thevariable reading speed sound layers comprise variable start positionsbased on the percentage of the timeslot segment period within which theaudio feature begins. The reading speed matching function is arranged toshorten or lengthen the soundtrack timeline in accordance with the newtimeslot segment period and then alter the absolute start positions ofthe audio features based on their percentage start position. The readingspeed matching function then produces a modified soundtrack timeline forall the sound layers and with new audio feature start positions 174. Themodified soundtrack can then be played by the user. It will beappreciated that the reading speed matching function may be arranged toalter portions of the soundtrack timeline if desired, such as theun-played portion of the remaining soundtrack if the reading speed isaltered during playback.

In one form of the playback system, a dynamic or automatic reading speedinput may be provided. The automatic reading speed input is calculatedbased on the average time between ‘next page’ signals from the user suchthat the reading speed is calculated and the soundtrack timelinedynamically updated and modified at each new page transition withaverages and weightings applied over multiple pages to refine thereader's reading speed.

In some forms of the playback system, a soundtrack modification module180 is provided as shown in FIG. 19. This module enables the user tomodify the sound layers and audio features of the sound layers. Thesoundtrack modification module 180 may preferably have full capabilitiesof the soundtrack production system previously described, or a reducedversion of that functionality. For example, the user may be able to havea song replacement function such that the user can replace certain audiofeatures in specific sound layers, such as the music layer, withexisting audio files from their own music library or database. Inaddition, there may be an automatic function to replace certain audiofiles with favourite songs from the user's music library or database.The user may also be able to deselect sound layers so that they are notplayed or muted in the soundtrack.

Advantages and Benefits of the Composite Soundtrack and System

The composite soundtrack enables the reader of a book to enjoy thereading experience in a new and novel way. The composite soundtrack,comprising multiple sound layers of sound effects, atmospheric noise andbackground music, plays throughout the duration of a book and the timingof audio features in some of the layers is adjustable to match theuser's reading speed so that the soundtrack closely matches events asthey are read. The composite soundtrack enables each sound layer to runconcurrently with each other but without losing their independent audioproperties such as the start/stop positions and transition effects. Thecomposite soundtrack contains embedded properties that govern theplayback of the audio features throughout the soundtrack and thisenables the soundtrack to be delivered at a constant flow so as not tointerrupt the reading process. In preferred forms, the soundtrack formatenables the soundtrack to be configured to match the reading speed ofthe user without altering the sound quality, pitch or tempo of theoriginal audio features. For example, the arrangement or position of theaudio features in the soundtrack timeline can be matched to the user'sreading speed without altering the sound quality, pitch or tempo of eachindividual audio feature.

In some forms of the soundtrack and system, the reader can personalisethe soundtrack by adding songs from his or her music library to thesoundtrack of a book. This may be advantageous to the reader as eachreader would have a unique taste in music or different languages and onesoundtrack would not be suitable to cater to the taste of readers of allages.

The composite soundtrack has various applications. It is a text sourceaccessory to enhance the enjoyment of reading, but could also be used asa reading aid for small children or the visually impaired. Thesoundtrack could have an extra variable reading speed sound layer thatcontains an oral reading of a book as in an audio book. Small childrenwould find it very useful to help them learn to read and also encouragethem to read in the absence of an adult.

The foregoing description describes the invention in relation topreferred embodiments. The invention is in no way limited to thesepreferred embodiments as they are purely to exemplify the inventiononly. Variations and modifications maybe made thereto without departingfrom the scope of the invention as defined by the accompanying claims.

What is claimed is:
 1. A non-transient tangible medium readable by aprocessor and having recorded thereon a digital composite soundtrack foran associated text source, the soundtrack comprising: a voice layercomprising an oral reading of the text source for playback; and asynchronised soundtrack comprising a soundtrack timeline, and at leastone sound layer having an arrangement of audio features that areconfigured to play at respective start positions in the soundtracktimeline to correspond to respective portions of the text source suchthat the playback timing of the audio features is synchronised with theoral reading of the text source of the voice layer, and wherein thesoundtrack is configured such that the or each sound layer of thesynchronised soundtrack of the composite soundtrack is selectivelymutable during playback.
 2. A non-transient tangible medium readable bya processor and having recorded thereon a digital composite soundtrackaccording to claim 1 wherein the text source is a book and the oralreading of the voice layer of the composite soundtrack is an audiobook.3. A non-transient tangible medium readable by a processor and havingrecorded thereon a digital composite soundtrack according to claim 1wherein the volume of the voice layer of the composite soundtrack isconfigured to decrease over time during playback.
 4. A non-transienttangible medium readable by a processor and having recorded thereon adigital composite soundtrack according to claim 1 wherein the compositesoundtrack is for a reader to play while reading the associated textsource, and wherein the synchronised soundtrack of the compositesoundtrack is a variable duration soundtrack that is dynamicallyadjustable to be shortened or lengthened based on a reading speed inputrepresenting the reader's text reading speed such that the playbacktiming of such audio features is matched to the text reading speed ofthe reader.
 5. A non-transient tangible medium readable by a processorand having recorded thereon a digital composite soundtrack according toclaim 4 wherein the playback timing of at least some audio features ofthe synchronised soundtrack of the composite soundtrack is timed tosynchronise with events occurring in the text source as it is read bythe reader by providing variable start positions that are dependent onthe reading speed input such that the playback timing of such audiofeatures is matched to the text reading speed of the reader.
 6. Anon-transient tangible medium readable by a processor and havingrecorded thereon a digital composite soundtrack according to claim 4wherein the playback speed of the voice layer of the compositesoundtrack is the same as the reading speed input associated with thesynchronized soundtrack of the composite soundtrack.
 7. A non-transienttangible medium readable by a processor and having recorded thereon adigital composite soundtrack according to claim 4 wherein the playbackspeed of the voice layer of the composite soundtrack is adjustable tomatch the reading speed input associated with the synchronizedsoundtrack of the composite soundtrack.
 8. A non-transient tangiblemedium readable by a processor and having recorded thereon a digitalcomposite soundtrack according to claim 4 wherein the reading speedinput associated with the synchronized soundtrack of the compositesoundtrack is adjustable to match the playback speed of the voice layerof the composite soundtrack.
 9. A non-transient tangible medium readableby a processor and having recorded thereon a digital compositesoundtrack according to claim 1 wherein the synchronised soundtrack ofthe composite soundtrack comprises a plurality of sound layersconfigured to play concurrently through the soundtrack timeline, eachsound layer having an arrangement of one or more audio features.
 10. Anon-transient tangible medium readable by a processor and havingrecorded thereon a digital composite soundtrack according to claim 9wherein the synchronised soundtrack of the composite soundtrackcomprises a music layer comprising one or more audio featurescorresponding to background music, a background layer comprising one ormore audio features corresponding to scene related sound, and an effectslayer comprising one or more audio features corresponding to soundeffects timed to play with events occurring in the text source as it isread by a reader.
 11. A method of producing a composite soundtrack foran associated text source, the soundtrack comprising: a voice layercomprising an oral reading of the text source; a synchronised soundtrackcomprising a soundtrack timeline, and at least one sound layer having anarrangement of audio features that are configured to play at respectivestart positions in the soundtrack timeline to correspond to respectiveportions of the text source such that the playback timing of the audiofeatures is synchronised with the oral reading of the text source of thevoice layer, and wherein the soundtrack is configured such that the oreach sound layer of the synchronised soundtrack of the compositesoundtrack is selectively mutable during playback, the method beingexecutable on a system comprising a processor and memory, and the methodcomprising the steps of: (a) receiving and storing as soundtrack data avoice layer comprising an oral reading of the text source; (b) receivingor generating configuration data for creating each audio feature of thesynchronised soundtrack of the composite soundtrack and storing thatconfiguration data as soundtrack data in memory, the configuration datafor each audio feature comprising: a start position in the soundtracktimeline that determines when the audio feature starts playing in thesoundtrack timeline; and an audio file selected from a databaseaccessible to the system to be associated for playback with each audiofeature; (c) configuring the or each sound layer of the synchronisedsoundtrack of the composite soundtrack to be selectively mutable duringplayback; and (d) compiling and outputting the configured soundtrackdata into a soundtrack data file or files for playback.
 12. A methodaccording to claim 11 wherein the text source is a book and the oralreading of the voice layer of the composite soundtrack is an audiobook.13. A method according to claim 11 further comprising configuring thevolume of the voice layer of the composite soundtrack is configured todecrease over time during playback.
 14. A method according to claim 11wherein the synchronised soundtrack of the composite soundtrack is for areader to play while reading the associated text source, and wherein thesynchronised soundtrack is a variable duration soundtrack that isdynamically adjustable to be shortened or lengthened based on a readingspeed input representing the reader's text reading speed, wherein theplayback timing of at least some audio features is timed to synchronisewith events occurring in the text source as it is read by the reader byproviding variable start positions that are dependent on the readingspeed input such that the playback timing of such audio features ismatched to the text reading speed of the reader, the method furthercomprising configuring the playback speed of the voice layer of thecomposite soundtrack to be adjustable to match the reading speed inputassociated with the synchronized soundtrack.
 15. A method according toclaim 11 wherein the synchronised soundtrack of the composite soundtrackis for a reader to play while reading the associated text source, andwherein the synchronised soundtrack is a variable duration soundtrackthat is dynamically adjustable to be shortened or lengthened based on areading speed input representing the reader's text reading speed,wherein the playback timing of at least some audio features is timed tosynchronise with events occurring in the text source as it is read bythe reader by providing variable start positions that are dependent onthe reading speed input such that the playback timing of such audiofeatures is matched to the text reading speed of the reader, the methodfurther comprising configuring the reading speed input associated withthe synchronised soundtrack to be adjustable to match the playback speedof the voice layer of the composite soundtrack.
 16. A method accordingto claim 11 wherein step (b) further comprises automatically selectingaudio files for playback from the database for at least some of theaudio features based on one or more characteristics of the respectiveportions of the text source to which the audio features are synchronisedwith.
 17. A method according to claim 16 wherein automatically selectingaudio files for playback from the database for at least some of theaudio features comprises automatically selecting an audio file for anaudio feature based on the mood or type of activity occurring in theportion of the text source to which the audio feature is synchronisedwith.
 18. A method according to claim 16 wherein automatically selectingaudio files for playback from the database for at least some of theaudio features comprises automatically selecting an audio file for anaudio feature based on the event occurring in the portion of the textsource to which the audio feature is synchronised with.
 19. A methodaccording to claim 16 wherein automatically selecting audio files forplayback from the database for at least some of the audio featurescomprises automatically selecting an audio file for an audio featurebased on any one or more of the following: popularity, genre, beat,tempo, and/or pitch of the audio files.
 20. A soundtrack playback systemfor playback of a digital composite soundtrack for an associated textsource, the soundtrack comprising a voice layer comprising an oralreading of the text source; a synchronised soundtrack comprising asoundtrack timeline, and at least one sound layer having an arrangementof audio features that are configured to play at respective startpositions in the soundtrack timeline to correspond to respectiveportions of the text source such that the playback timing of the audiofeatures is synchronised with the oral reading of the text source of thevoice layer, and wherein the soundtrack is configured such that the oreach sound layer of the synchronised soundtrack of the compositesoundtrack is selectively mutable during playback, the systemcomprising: a processor configured to process a soundtrack data file orfiles representing the composite soundtrack, each audio feature in thesynchronised soundtrack of the composite soundtrack comprising datarepresenting the following configured audio properties: a start positionin the soundtrack timeline that determines when the audio feature startsplaying in the soundtrack timeline; and an audio file to be associatedfor playback with each audio feature, and wherein the processor isconfigured to co-ordinate playback of the voice layer of the compositesoundtrack and the at least one layer of the synchronised soundtrack ofthe composite soundtrack and generate a soundtrack audio output signal;an audio output system that is configured to receive and convert thesoundtrack audio output signal into audible sound; memory accessible bythe processor and which is configured to store the soundtrack data fileor files; an output display operated by the processor; a user interfacecomprising an operable graphical user interface displayed on the outputdisplay and which is operable by a user to interact with modules of thesystem; and a soundtrack modification module that is operable by a userto selectively mute one or more sound layers of the synchronisedsoundtrack of the composite soundtrack during playback.
 21. A soundtrackplayback system according to claim 20 wherein the text source is a bookand the oral reading of the voice layer of the composite soundtrack isan audiobook.
 22. A soundtrack playback system according to claim 20wherein the composite soundtrack is for a reader to play while readingthe associated text source, and wherein the synchronised soundtrack ofthe composite soundtrack is a variable duration soundtrack that isdynamically adjustable to be shortened or lengthened based on a readingspeed input representing the reader's text reading speed, the systemfurther comprising a reading speed module that is configured to receivea reading speed input and which modifies the playback timing of anyaudio features of the synchronised soundtrack of the compositesoundtrack based on the received reading speed input such that theplayback timing of such audio features is matched to the text readingspeed of the reader.
 23. A soundtrack playback system according to claim22 wherein the system is configured to adjust the playback speed of thevoice layer of the composite soundtrack to match the reading speed inputassociated with the synchronized soundtrack of the composite soundtrack.24. A soundtrack playback system according to claim 22 wherein thesystem is configured to adjust the reading speed input associated withthe synchronized soundtrack of the composite soundtrack to match theplayback speed of the voice layer of the composite soundtrack.